Fittipaldi, Calderon and Reddy set to resume MRF Challenge battle

After an entertaining first round in Abu Dhabi, the Indian-based MRF Challenge series is set for round two of the championship at the Bahrain International circuit this weekend.

With two wins at Yas Marina circuit, Honda protégé Nobuharu Matsushita leads the championship with 80 points, while Pietro Fittipaldi is second on 68 points.

But the Japanese driver will not drive in Bahrain as he competes in the GP2 race at the same venue this weekend, handing Fittipaldi the unofficial lead in the standings, chased by Tatiana Calderon with 61 points.

Title protagonists Fittipaldi and Calderon will again be joined by Indian Tarun Reddy and Russian Nikita Troistskiy, who will be hoping to make it a four-way battle at the front in Bahrain.

Apart from Matsushita, another driver to miss the round is European F3 racer Jake Dennis - who is on Macau Grand Prix duty - as five new drivers join the championship in Bahrain.

Among the five, MSA Formula race winner Matheus Leist and former MRF Challenge race winner Sam Dejonghe will be action.

With the MRF Challenge sharing the bill with WEC's 6 Hours of Bahrain as well as GP2 and GP3, the round will feature a sole practice session, followed by qualifying and two races instead of four.